michigan supreme court

Some residents of northern Michigan could be eligible to have their criminal records expunged. The Michigan Supreme Court and University of Detroit Mercy’s law school will be holding a series of clinics that will help guide people through that process.

The Michigan Supreme Court says prosecutors in criminal cases cannot rely on experts to testify on how often children typically lie or tell the truth about sex abuse. The court says juries were swayed by opinions, not the facts, in two individual cases.

The Michigan Supreme Court ruled Thursday that Macomb County retirees’ benefits can be altered.

A class-action lawsuit against the county involved 16,000 unionized Macomb County retirees. The majority opinion says Macomb County's collective-bargaining agreements did not give the plaintiffs the right to unalterable and lifetime retirement health care benefits.

Michigan Supreme Court justices could get pay raises - the first since 2002. The State Officers Compensation Commission (SOCC) outlined its raise recommendation at their May 30 meeting.

The SOCC discussed certain government officials’ salaries. It recommended a 10% pay increase for Michigan Supreme Court justices by 2022. The justices are currently paid $164,610, but the pay raise would increase their salaries to $172,841 in 2021 and $181,483 in 2022.

The Michigan Supreme court ruled unanimously on Monday that a passenger in a car may challenge a police search of his personal property found in the vehicle. And it overruled its 2007 decision in People v. LaBelle that barred passengers from challenging a search of a car in which they were traveling.

The Michigan Supreme Court held its first oral argument sessions last week and agreed to take more cases.

The court heard oral arguments in almost a dozen cases over two days. In a lawsuit against a state agency, Department of Corrections employees say their jobs were reclassified to a lower pay grade even though they were performing the same tasks.

The Michigan Supreme Court will hear the first oral arguments of its new session January 23. Two of the seven justices on the court won their seats in November’s statewide election. Morning Edition host Doug Tribou spoke with the newly elected justices: Megan Cavanagh and Elizabeth Clement.

On Election Day, Michigan voters will select two state Supreme Court justices. Their choices could shift the political balance on the court, which is currently five to two in favor of Republican-backed justices. This week, Morning Edition is featuring interviews with candidates for the court.

We conclude our four-part series with Justice Kurtis Wilder, who was appointed to the Supreme Court by Gov. Rick Snyder to fill a vacancy in 2017.

The political makeup of the Michigan Supreme Court could change significantly on Election Day. Two seats are open and two current justices, both nomiated by the Republican Party, are running. Republican-backed justices currently hold a 5 to 2 majority over Democratic nominees.

Voters could shift the balance on the Michigan Supreme Court on Election Day. There are currently five Republican-backed justices and two supported by the Democratic Party. Two seats currently held by Republican nominees are on this year's statewide ballot.

As part of Michigan Radio’s election coverage, Morning Edition is featuring interviews with candidates for the Supreme Court, including Justice Elizabeth Clement.

The court’s opinion specifically noted portions of the act which allowed the state to retroactively impose punishments on individuals without due process.

The state of Michigan appealed the circuit court's ruling, sending Does vs Snyder to the U.S. Supreme Court. In October 2017, the Supreme Court decided not to take up the case, upholding the 6th Circuit Court's unanimous decision.

It has now been nearly two years since the original ruling and the Legislature has failed to make any reforms to the law.

At the end of June, the ACLU filed a lawsuit against Michigan to force the state to finally make changes to its sex offender registry.

The Voters Not Politicians proposal is on the ballot this fall. It would establish an independent commission to draw the legislative and congressional district boundaries instead of allowing the party in power to draw them. If it passes, it would put an end to gerrymandering.

The group Citizens Protecting Michigan’s Constitution has filed an appeal with the state Supreme Court and asked the justices to put an immediate hold on the lower court decision that would place the question on the November ballot.

The Michigan Supreme Court is interested in the case of a former police chief in the Upper Peninsula who's been barred from running for public office because of a corruption conviction.

Fred Paquin wanted to run for St. Ignace City Council in 2013 and 2015 but was told that a conviction disqualified him under the Michigan Constitution. He pleaded guilty in 2010 to misusing federal money given to the Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians when he was the tribe's police chief.

Paquin says he shouldn't be barred from running for city council because the tribe is sovereign.

The Michigan Supreme Court has ruled in favor of a century-old inn in a lawsuit over hot coals on a Lake Michigan beach. The court says Watervale Inn is protected by a law that shields landowners from liability during recreational activities. The court last week reversed a decision by the Michigan appeals court. A 10-year-old girl, Bailey Noble, suffered burns while stepping on the hidden remnants of a beach bonfire in 2013.

With attention to gun control legislation at the forefront of the national conscience, the Michigan Supreme Court will hear arguments Wednesday over whether schools can trump state law to enact their own firearm restrictions.

Both Ann Arbor Public Schools and Clio Area School District are facing lawsuits by gun rights groups after banning weapons on school grounds in 2015 and 1996, respectively.

State law currently bans guns from weapon-free school zones; however, someone with a concealed pistol permit can enter school property with an openly holstered gun.

The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality has approved a permit for Nestle to increase the volume of water it pumps from its well in Osceola County from 250 gallons per minute to up to 400 gallons per minute.

More than 80,000 people spoke out against Nestle's permit request, but the MDEQ said it cannot base its decision on public opinion.

This Week in Review, Weekend Edition host Rebecca Kruth and senior news analyst Jack Lessenberry discuss potential political blow-back that could stem from the state's approval of Nestle's permit.

A lawsuit has been filed to challenge Michigan's ban on public aid for private schools.

The ban has been in place since voters added it to the state Constitution in 1970. A judge recently cited it while blocking the state from giving $2.5 million to private schools for fire drills, inspections, and other state requirements. The Michigan Supreme Court declined to intervene.

The lawsuit was filed Monday on behalf of a group that includes a Roman Catholic school in Grand Rapids, parents and lawmakers.

The Michigan Supreme Court will decide whether it’s legal for judges to order defendants to pay fees and court costs.

One defendant is challenging the practice, which he says violates the state constitution.

Shawn Cameron Junior was ordered to pay more than $1,600 in court costs after he was convicted of assault. He says that amounts to a tax, and only the legislature can enact taxes. Cameron says courts can also be arbitrary in how they set the charges.

The case was filed this week on behalf of two men who lost Oakland County properties to foreclosure.

One of the men, Uri Rafaeli, lost a rental property in Southfield when he miscalculated the amount of interest he owed on 2011 property taxes by $8.41. Oakland County foreclosed, then sold the home for $24,500.